Pope: So, you're not Catholic?
Then you're not in true Church
Benedict ignites holy war of words
by stating other groups 'defective'
Pope Benedict XVI has ignited controversy across the world by approving a document saying non-Catholic Christian communities are either defective or not true churches, and the Roman Catholic Church provides the only true path to salvation.
"Christ 'established here on earth' only one church," said the document, reasserting the primacy of Catholicism.
It said other Christian communities such as Protestants "cannot be called 'churches' in the proper sense" since they don't have what's known as apostolic succession – that is, the ability to trace their bishops back to the original 12 apostles of Jesus.
The document said the Orthodox church suffered from a "wound" because it did not recognize the primacy of the pope, adding the wound was "still more profound" among Protestant denominations.
clipped from: www.worldnetdaily.com 